Rendezvous with the Authentic Archaeologist
‘Like the inner explorer who seeks adventure and the unknown, the authentic archaeologist knows how to unearth remnants of memory buried deeply in the fertile soil of the subconscious mind. Archaeologists “read” artifacts much the way a detective reads clues. The reason we want to awaken the authentic archaeologist is to excavate the real you.
“How we remember, and what we remember, and why we remember form the most personal map of our individuality,” writer Christina Baldwin reminds us. Today, become willing to remember. Prepare yourself for a gentle but authentic dig that will help you discover the Mystery in which your soul abides.
Whether you realize it or not, you have lived many lives, and each one has left an indelible mark on your soul. I’m not referring to reincarnation. I’m referring to the episodic way in which our lives evolve: childhood, adolescence, college years or early career, marriages, motherhood, perhaps life as a single mother, widowhood and onward. At each stage in our lives, we have both laughter and tears. But more important for our interests, we develop personal preferences. Each life experience leaves a layer of memory like a deposit of sediment: things we’ve loved and moments we’ve cherished that when recalled, reveal glimmers of our true selves.
Some women are hesitant to recall their past because they’re afraid they’ll dredge up painful memories. But just as each illness brings a gift for us if we will look for it, so each painful memory comes bearing a peace offering. There is nothing to fear. The past asks only to be remembered.’ -Sarah Ban Breahtnach, Simple Abundance A Daybook of Comfort and Joy
This is so honest and true. It is like I said when we embarked on the Simple Abundance journey, there are many chapters of our lives that make up the story. The story of who we are. What we become and why. The story that makes us who we are and who we are not.
And there is nothing to fear. The past asks only to be remembered- so very true.
‘We can not kindle when we will
The fire that in the heart resides
The spirit bloweth and is still
In mystery our soul abides. ‘
-Matthew Arnold